The Science Zone: Electricity

Monday

Nov 7, 2016 at 8:40 AM

Dr. Ken Bridges More Content Now

Electricity is the energy behind the modern world. It powers cell phones, computers, and all the other appliances that the world enjoys today. Hospitals, schools, and businesses all rely on it. It can be produced many different ways, from solar cells to nuclear reactors. The entire modern world is designed to run on electricity, to the point that the economy and the design of cities center on its use. How the world understands electricity and how the world uses it was the result of many men and women researching and experimenting for generations. Today, researchers still study electricity to understand how to produce it more efficiently and to use it safely.

Get electrified by these basic facts on electricity:

1. Electricity is a form of energy caused by the flow of electrons, tiny subatomic particles with a negative charge constantly orbiting the nuclei of atoms.

2. Benjamin Franklin proved through his famous kite-flying experiments in the 1700s that lightning was indeed electricity.

3. In 1820, Danish scientist Hans Christian Oersted discovered that electricity and magnetism were related, as both were the result of the motion of electrons.

4. In 1831, English scientist Michael Faraday developed the process of electromagnetic induction, or how to create electricity, through his creation of a small generator.

5. The “ohm” is a unit of electrical resistance or the difficulty electricity has in passing through a conductor and is what poses the greatest risks of injury with electricity.

6. Engineers and electricians measure the flow of electrical current through a unit of measure called the “ampere,” or just “amp.”

7. The “volt” measures how much energy can be created and is a unit named after Italian physicist Alessandro Volta who created the first chemical battery in 1800.

8. There are two types of electricity, direct current and alternating current, though alternating current is mostly used because of its ability to be transmitted long distances, while direct current is mostly used in batteries.

9. Thomas Edison’s development of the light bulb in 1879 made electricity practical to the general public.

—Dr. Bridges is a professor of history and geography living in Arkansas. He can be contacted at drkenbridges@gmail.com.